Finding a Travel Corkscrew

So one of the things that pains me the most as an avid traveler and wine drinker is the hassle and expense of obtaining wine on the road. My usual experience is one of the following unsatisfying options:

Spend way too much on good wine by the glass at a bar

Hope my hotel room happens to have a corkscrew (which is only about 35% of the time)

Spend an extra $10 to buy a cheap throw away corkscrew when buying a bottle

Settle for whatever is available in screw top (which is not usually promising at convenience stores and or locations like Seward, Alaska).

The ideal would to find a corkscrew that’s easy to use and will never be confiscated. I haven’t found much consistency in when I can and can’t carry on a corkscrew. They’ll let me fly out of Washington, DC with something but a much less strategic flight from Charlotte to Charleston will get that same thing confiscated.

The one that always gets through is the one that’s hard to use. In fact I’ve abandoned it stuck in many an unopened bottle that I finally gave up on. If you can use the one below, you’re golden. And it can be had for less than $5 on Amazon

But if you’re challenged like I am, the options aren’t as obvious. The TSA website basically says don’t do it.

So I started doing some research and found a great article on WineLoversPage.com. Although it put more emphasis on foil cutters than I needed, it did suggest two options. The bladeless Boomerang Wine Opener and the Zyliss.

I couldn’t find the Zyliss for sale anywhere, so I’m trying the similar, well-reviewed Brabantia Classic Corkscrew($10). My only worry is that one reviewer mentioned their’s was confiscated in security. I can’t tell if that was in the immediate post 9-11 years when they would take everything, or after that. I’m also not sure just how big it will wind up being.

And I’m going to try the compact Boomerang ($10) which I know won’t be confiscated. I don’t have the best coordination with that type, but sure it will be better than trying to get the tube of plastic evenly aligned in order to get enough leverage to open the bottle.

Will keep you posted on my findings.

If anyone has had good success with their corkscrew choice, please share in the comments!